


Bodyguard

by sakkajagga



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-29 10:00:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19017628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sakkajagga/pseuds/sakkajagga
Summary: Being an idol looks glamorous from the outside, but there are struggles you strive to keep hidden from your fans.  Being lonely is one of them.During your current tour that has brought you to Fortuna, your managers hire a local bodyguard to keep you from being mobbed whenever you have free time to roam the city for your own sanity.  And while this isn't any different than any other job, this bodyguard is entirely different than anyone you've ever met before.





	Bodyguard

**Author's Note:**

> i have no excuses. took a single sentence request on tumblr and turned it into this super self-indulgent mess... please enjoy lmao

    Nero was no stranger to taking odd jobs wherever he could.  Demon hunting, even though his full-time gig, was not as lucrative as one might believe.  In the beginning he’d thought Dante was just careless and frivolous with his money, but now he could see that it wasn’t always a stable method of bringing in money, so he continued taking jobs around Fortuna--nearly having to beg Kyrie to stop accepting vegetables as payment when they were jobs she brought to him.  Not that he wasn’t grateful for the food, but they still needed actual money to take care of the orphanage they were apparently growing. At first it was a kid here and there that needed some help to find their own parents, or new ones in worst case scenarios. But now they’d obtained a whole building and as he so bluntly stated, “You can’t use potatoes to keep all the lights on.”  The joke had gone over most the kids’ heads but Kyrie had merely smiled the way she always did and told him that they’d ‘manage’.

“He doesn’t look like much of a bodyguard,” one of the men on the other side of the table grumbled.

“That’s a good thing,” the other responded, still eying Nero as if he were a thing to purchase rather than a person applying for a job.  Though by the looks of these guys, it was probably some shady shit they were into. He didn’t even know who, or what, he was supposed to be guarding yet.  “The more inconspicuous this putz looks--no offense, kid--the better it’ll be for her. You don’t want some clown who’s gonna draw attention.”

“And if something happens?  This guy don’t look too buff.”

Nero scoffed softly to himself, for a myriad of things.  Being called ‘kid’, his physique being ridiculed, the sheer doubt in their eyes while they gawked at him; it all pissed him off.  “What? You wanna demonstration?” he reached up and grabbed the hilt of Red Queen, preparing to pull the sword from his back when the less doubtful one held up a hand.

“That won’t be necessary, tough guy.  I’ve done some digging, don’t you worry.  I believe you got what it takes to keep one little lady safe.”

That, somehow, seemed to appease Nero enough to lower his hand to his side with a shrug, “So who’s the ‘little lady’ then?”

“You don’t need to know that right now.”  The first guy cut in, “Just know that it’s important that you don’t look suspicious and draw attention to her!”

“What do you mean ‘suspicious’?” He couldn't help but ponder aloud.  “What am I supposed to do? Pretend like we’re on a date while I’m escorting her somewhere, or something?”

“That’s actually not a bad idea…” the more calm suit responded, tapping his chin with his forefinger.  “The more you blend in, the better.”

“This  _ whole thing _ is a bad idea,” the first griped.  “Why’d you agree to this anyway?”

“To keep the kid happy, now lighten up…”  As if they remembered Nero was still standing there in front of them, witnessing their conversation, he cleared his throat and waved dismissively at him, “Be back here 6 AM, sharp.  Got that?”

“Yeah.  Sure.”

  
  


At the office the following morning, he stood in that exact same spot as yesterday, and exactly at 6AM as demanded of him.  The two suits were there, but no little girl--Nero assumed, from the way those two had been talking--was present with them. “All right, kid.  There’s a few things you’ll need to know for this job.”

“Shouldn’t you have told me this  _ yesterday _ ?” Nero cut in to ask.

The first guy didn’t appreciate it, “Shut up when I’m explaining to you, all right!?  This is important!” The second guy sighed, lifting his mug of coffee for a generous sip; eyes seeming to say ‘See what I have to deal with? Welcome to my world.’  “Now the most important thing is that she’s gonna wanna go everywhere at once--keep her focused. And don’t let her trick you.”

“Trick me?”

“Yeah.  She does this...this puppy eye thing.  Fucks everyone up.” The guy tried doing an impersonation of the doe-eyed look he was talking about, but just looked insanely creepy to Nero, who merely nodded at the dubious warning with a raised eyebrow.  “And for the love of all things holy, don’t let her talk you into eating junk food!”

The more rules that were imposed, the more Nero was getting confused.  Was he watching a kid or a puppy?? “Sure, yeah, keep her under my thumb, got it.”

“ _ Most _ importantly,” the guy pointed at Nero to make doubly sure he was paying attention, “Make sure no one recognizes her, got it?  Don’t draw attention to yourself or her to make sure you two just look like normal shmoes. Got it?”

“I  _ got it _ ,” Nero huffed, getting annoyed.  “You haven’t even told me who the hell ‘she’ is!”

The two exchanged knowing looks and the second, who had been quietly nursing his mug of coffee up till now finally spoke up, “Well, you’ll be guarding Y/N.  Just make sure she stays low-key, okay?” They paused, as if expecting a reaction out of him. Nero merely shifted in place, blinking at them. “Not a fan, huh?”

“Guess not,” Nero shrugged, “I don’t even know who she is.”

They shared another look, as if not believing him.  “You’ve  _ never _ heard of Y/N?  She sings? Dances??”  The first guy questioned him, brows arched almost comically high and wrinkling his forehead.  “The number one idol in Fortuna right now according to the polls??”

Nero shrugged yet again, “I work a lot.  Out of the city.” He watched the two converse amongst themselves as he considered all this new information.  So, it wasn’t a puppy, and wasn’t a small child--so this idol must had been still pretty young for them to be so overbearing on just about every aspect of her life.  It was also sort of strange they’d let a stranger be her bodyguard...but maybe that really was the idea; to have a local be around so at least one of them wouldn’t be obviously not used to the area.

“You know the area, though, don’t you?”

“Yeah.  Grew up here.”

Before any more questions could be thrown around, the door behind Nero opened.  “Oh, Y/N, thank you for gracing us with your presence this morning at,” Nero was turning to look over his shoulder, preparing to greet a young preteen when his eyes met with hips where he figured a kid’s eye height would be.  The clothes were definitely not Fortuna fashion--over the top and glamorous; definitely the sign of someone who did not mingle with the common folk. “6:32 AM.”

 

You watched the stranger in front of you regard you with surprise before smiling at him, “Good morning.”

He blinked owlishly at you, not saying anything for a long second before seeming to realize you’d spoken to him, “Oh, yeah...Good…  Good morning.” He moved away when you walked closer, as if he was paranoid to be near you, but you paid him no mind for the moment.

“I’m sorry...there was a cafe and I wanted a drink, but a few young girls recognized me, and…”  You didn’t have to continue to let them know that you got held up signing autographs.

Before the two could start fussing at you, the stranger to your side cut in, “Well, dressed like that, you’d get attention even if you were from here.”

You looked down at yourself, the fitted pale pink sweater and skinny-legged white pants a screaming contrast to the clothing you saw other women dawning now that you thought about it.  “I guess you’re right,” you admitted with a small laugh. “I’m sorry, I don’t believe we’ve been introduced,” you said, sticking out your hand for a polite shake. “I’m Y/N.”

“N-Nero,” he responded, moving a little too quickly to reach over and shake your hand, and not realizing he had a pretty silly smile on his face.

“He’s going to be your bodyguard while we’re here in Fortuna.”

You looked back at him, brows raised slightly, as if you too had forgotten you were even going to get a bodyguard.  “Oh!” You turned back to Nero immediately, “I hope we have a great time together.” His brows went up slightly, finding the statement a little unorthodox, but simply nodded.

“Don’t even try it, Y/N,” one of the men warned, “We’ve already warned him about your antics.”

“Antics?” you pouted slightly.

“You’re wasting time,” the second man looked at his wrist watch, the longer you stand here gabbing, the more time you waste from sightseeing.”

“The first thing you should do is get changed,” Nero offered, gesturing at your outfit with his gloved hand.  “Like I said. Even if you were from here, the clothes alone would have people noticing you at all times.”

When you looked back at the two behind the desk, the second man shook his head.  “We don’t have anymore of your luggage yet. We arrived just yesterday.”

“I guess...our first stop is going to be a clothing store,” you said as you turned back to Nero with a smile.  “Lead the way, please!”

 

Inside the shop, true to his position, Nero hung around the front end, seemingly on the lookout for anyone who might look suspicious or like they might recognize you.  The clothes were a little old fashioned and conservative for your tastes--not to mention the lack of vibrancy--but it was at least not a full-on church ensemble as you had seen many of the other women wearing.  “It’s not really me, but…” you spoke to Nero’s back once you had purchased the clothes and put your real outfit in the bag the new ones would have come in.

When he turned around, he had that same unsure look as before, lips pursing into a thin line as he averted his gaze.

“No good?”

“It’s not that--you look fine,” he moved to the exit and held the door for you to continue out to the street and fell in step with you.

You noticed you were getting a lot less blatant stares now.  The only ones noticeable now were when someone walked close by; their gaze lingering a little longer than you thought was normal.  “I’m still getting funny looks,” you grabbed onto the rolled up sleeve of his jacket to make sure he’d hear you.

“It’s probably your makeup,” he answered without looking down at you.

“It’s not bad, is it?”

“No.  It’s just--”

“Different?”  You were starting to get an idea about how the people of Fortuna would view outsiders.  “How do you get by?”

Nero tilted his head to look at you from the corner his eye, “What do you mean?”

“Well...you carry a sword.  You have silver hair. And…”  Your gaze dropped to where his right arm would be visible if you weren’t on his left side.

He seemed to be expecting that and lifted the Devil Breaker up for you to see it clearly.  “I’m a local,” he said, leaving it at that since he really didn’t feel like getting into his history and strained relations with other people with a stranger he literally just met this morning.

You wanted to touch it, but knew it would be rude.  Instead you looked ahead to see the open gates of what looked like a forested, shady park.  Without much thought you suddenly pointed at it and grabbed Nero by the hand to drag him with you, “Let’s go here!”

He let you tug him along by the hand and noted how soft yours felt fitted around his.  He also noted that you weren’t in a hurry to let go, even as you slowed your pace to a leisurely stroll.  After a few moments, you realized you were still holding on and jerked your hand away as quickly as you had been to grab on.

“Oh, sorry…”

“It’s fine.  We’re supposed to pretend to know each other, anyway, right?”

You hoped your smile didn’t turn as sad as you felt when he said that; nodding to hearing that same line that you’d heard so many times before.  You were much more quiet after that, taking in the sounds of nature and the beds of particularly planted flowers, and the couples that strolled hand in hand.  It made you contemplate how your life would be right now if you hadn’t become an idol; where would you be, who would you be friends with, what would you be doing?

“--hey!”  You didn’t even notice Nero was talking to you until he was suddenly lifting you up in his arms and taking a few steps back.

“Wh-what--”

“You were about to step on a snake,” Nero chided.  “What were you doing? Daydreaming?”

“Yeah…  Yeah, I’m sorry.”  You noticed some nearby others who were watching you two now, the commotion of Nero raising his voice and suddenly sweeping you off your feet catching their attention.  Ironically, offstage, you hated being the center of attention and felt your cheeks lighting up. “P-put me down, please… People are  _ staring _ …”

Nero seemed surprised by the statement, looking up from the snake slithering away without a care in the world to the few patrons passing by lazily; a few older women smiling in you two’s direction at your ‘young display of love’.  “Huh. Figured you’d be used to people staring at you,” he commented idly as he put your feet back to the earth before releasing you.

“Doesn’t mean I like it,” you murmured, straightening the long skirt before looking back up at him.  “Thank you, though.”

“Just doing my job.”

You nodded, eyes dropping away and continuing along the path that was obviously manmade but fashioned in such a way to still try to look natural.  Because he was behind you, you couldn’t see Nero’s pensive face as he contemplated your words and your demeanor since you were obviously nothing like he’d been expecting.  “They made me think you’d be so much trouble to deal with,” he said out of nowhere once you had stopped to look down into the water to watch koi swimming beneath its surface.

“What?”  You looked at his reflection in the water instead of moving.  “What do you mean?”

“Those two guys.  They made it seem like you’re a serious troublemaker.”

“Oh,” your gaze shifted to yourself.

“Not gonna tell me?”  When you didn’t answer quickly enough, Nero continued, “It’s fine if you don’t want to.  I’m just a stranger.”

You stood up and took a look around, making sure there weren’t any people nearby before turning to look up at him.  “They meant that I want my freedom.” His thin, silver brows arched up. “They hold me to these standards. What I eat.  What I wear. Where I go. Who I talk to.” You tried smiling so it didn’t seem like you were complaining. “I used to...ask the people they’d hire to watch me to let me do things normal people get to do.  Eat the same food. But they don’t like that. It could ruin my image, or my figure, or my voice.” Nero looked utterly confused as he listened. “What I call going to the beach, they call a potential PR disaster--what if someone takes a picture of me in a bikini?  What if I look fat?”

“Can’t you just...fire them?”

Your smile faded as you turned away and began walking again.  “Are you hungry? It’s almost lunch time…” Nero frowned, but followed.

 

Nero let you pick the place, unsurprised to find himself sat in a little cafe where he certainly stuck out amidst all the feminine touches that went into decorating the interior.  Certainly a spot that female friends met up, but he supposed it was the only thing you were used to. Still, he said nothing and took it in stride, watching the other peoples’ faces to make sure none of them recognized who you really were.  Admittedly he got worried for a second when the waitress gasped, but immediately zoned out once he realized that she was complimenting you on your makeup and asking for tips before finally taking your orders.

“Why don’t you quit?”  When you only looked at him in confusion, Nero shrugged.  “It doesn’t seem to make you happy--your  _ job _ .  So just quit.”

“It’s not that simple…”

“Sure it is.  Just don’t show up.  I’m sure they’ll get the picture.”

    You would have thought he was just joking around to try and cheer you up had it not been for the serious look on his face.  Your mouth fell open to respond, but the waitress showed back up to deliver the food; commenting how lucky you were that your boyfriend would willingly come to a place like this with you.  Before you could correct her, she was walking away. “Sorry,” you said, sure he didn’t want to be confused as your boyfriend.

    “It’s probably better, anway.  For your cover, and all.” He looked strangely comfortable, one arm thrown over the back of his seat that honestly looked like it would have been too small for him, but you supposed it was his jacket that made his size more imposing than he actually was.

 

    Most of the rest of your day dragging Nero around was much the same; him gently questioning you on your choices in career and life and you gracefully finding ways to dodge answering to changing the subject entirely up until you received a phone call that you should head back to discuss your itinerary for tomorrow.  You tried to hide your disappointment from him--despite him only hanging out because he was being paid to, you were actually having a good time with Nero; even if he was a little more blunt than the sort of people you were used to, but maybe that’s what you were liking about him so much. He had no problem whatsoever letting you know that he’d never even heard of you before, let alone being bothered to sugarcoat his opinions; but he was never rude about either.  He was such a strange... _ real _ person.

    “That’ll be it for the day,” the first one to always speak said to Nero once the two of you had entered the discreetly located office.  “She’ll be busy and won’t have time to go out. So be back here tomorrow.”

    “Tomorrow?”

    “Yes, son, tomorrow.  She can’t very well walk down the streets alone!”

    Nero supposed he’d just thought it was for today that you wanted to go out and about, and hadn’t considered he was going to be doing any actual escorting.  “Fine by me,” he shrugged before eventually telling you he’d see you later.

    You were in the middle of waving as he exited the double doors when you heard the second tut at you, “Don’t even think about it.”

    “About what?” you asked, genuinely confused as you turned to take your seat in front of him.

    “I recognize that look.  Don’t. You won’t be here long enough.”

    “I’m not doing anything.  I was just waving bye.”

  
  


    The next few days were busy, not leaving you much time to just be around Nero; which you thought was a strange complaint for you to secretly harbor.  But there was something about his presence that you craved despite having only known him for less than a week. He was real and earnest, and serious about this job.  Already he’d casually slid himself between you and someone who’d been looking your direction longer than normal multiple times, not giving them the chance to connect the dots before slipping an arm around you and ushering you close to his side so that he could more easily whisk you away.  It’d been his right arm once, the cold metal of the blue appendage making you press closer to his side out of shock, but you think he took it as you being uneasy with the apparatus since he from then on had gone out of his way to keep it away from you.

    “Where to next?”  Nero asked, looking down at you rather quickly eating a local pastry that had become your absolute favorite, that he assumed you wouldn’t have been allowed to eat outside of his presence.

    Still using his body to shield the fact that you were eating it--as if you were afraid there was someone else watching that was reporting back to the two--you looked down at your wristwatch to check the time.  “Oh...I actually have a free hour!”

    “Guess you didn’t need to wolf that down after all,” Nero chuckled and reached out with his left hand before brushing his thumb gently at the corner of your mouth.  The motion was unfamiliar and startled you enough to move your head back. Nero’s lips drew up in that thin line they made you’d noticed when he wasn’t particularly happy about something, “Sorry.”  His voice had dropped a little, “You had crumbs there.”

    “O-oh...thank you,” you tucked your hair behind your ear more out of habit than needing to actually do it, unaware of the pink tint rushing across your cheeks.

    “Where do you wanna go?”

    “Well it’s only an hour...maybe a walk through that park again?”

    “You really like that place, huh?”  Nero began moving first, leading the way without pause because he knew you’d fall into step with him.

    “You don’t?”

    “Never really thought about,” he shrugged, continuing to stay on the lookout rather than looking at you when he responded, “I’m usually working outside the city.”

    “Jobs like these?”

    “..sorta.”  He obviously didn’t want to talk about it, and despite your rampant curiosity to learn more about him, you didn’t want to push him on it.  After all, there were things he’d asked you that you refused to give straight answers on, so it was only fair.

    You blinked when his hand was suddenly grabbing your waist and pulling you against him, pace of his stride quickening, “N-Nero??”

    “--Someone’s following,” was all he said, urging you to keep up with him and planning on giving them the slip once inside the wooded preservation.  “When we cross the gates, I’m gonna pick you up,” he warned quietly, “so put your arms around my neck, okay? I won’t drop you. I promise.”

    You looked up out of habit, surprised to see him actually looking down at you as if to ensure the validity of his promise with his eyes.  “O-okay…”

    True to his word, no sooner than you passed under the metal archway and a particularly large tree, Nero bent, scooped you up bridal style and was suddenly leaping into the air at both an impossible speed and height.   _ Now _ you knew why he told you to put your arms around his neck and why he promised he wouldn’t drop you.  Hoping you weren’t choking him, you squeezed tightly and even more tightly shut your eyes as you pressed your face into his neck with a squeak.  Realistically you knew it had only been a few seconds, but the fall felt terrifying and like it lasted forever; the landing feeling even harder despite you not being the one absorbing the impact.  Nero landed directly on his feet and hopped forward a few steps due to the momentum. “There. That should buy us some time…uh…” He looked down to his chest, you still hiding your face and squeezing onto him for dear life, and was unable to stop the amused smile.  “You, uh, okay there?”

    “..yes…” you whispered, still not letting go.

    “We’re back on the ground.”

    “..that’s...good,”  You still weren’t moving.

    “Heh...first time flying?” he chuckled, looking around and finding a stone bench.  You felt him begin walking, but didn’t know where to since your eyes were still shut; not opening them until you felt him shift you higher in his hold before bending and then sitting with you still in his arms.  You felt the cold stone beneath your butt as you slowly peeled your eyes open in time for Nero to take his arm out from under your knees, letting you put your feet against the bench as well. His other was still around your back, gloved hand on your shoulder and holding you against his chest so that your head laid against his shoulder and neck.  Nero stretched his legs out, making you realize you were sitting between his spread thighs before you tried jerking up to get off him.

    “I’m sorry--”

    The words fell flat when he pulled on your shoulder to bring you back against his chest.  “Just calm down. It’ll be a few minutes at least before that guy even realizes what happened.”

    “But I--”  


    “You stress too much.”  You felt him resting his cheek against the top of your head.

    “If someone sees,” you still tried protesting but weren’t making any movements to get up anymore, “it would cause a scandal.”  Nero was quiet at that, knowing that he couldn’t easily just blow that off. For him, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but he knew now that your career was very tightly wound by these obsessive rules you had to live by.

    “You let me worry about that,” he eventually murmured, thumb beginning to idly move back and forth against your shoulder.

    His words, actions, and overall presence moved you.  You curled up into his chest and brought a fist to your face, not knowing why your eyes were burning.  This was the most at ease and safe you had ever felt, yet you had no idea why it was making you want to cry.  “I wish I could stay like this…” you whispered so softly you were sure he didn’t hear you.

    Instead of responding to you, Nero scoffed as he looked over his shoulder and muttered, “Geez...are all these creeps always this persistent?”  He resituated, hooking his metal arm back under your knees again and bracing the back of your shoulders. “Ready for round two?” he smirked down at you, “Hold on tight.”

    This time you preemptively threw your arms around him and pressed your forehead against his neck, but you didn’t close your eyes this time, watching the world sail by you as he somehow performed this superhuman feat against gravity.  Trusting him to keep you safe, you lifted an arm from round his neck and stuck your hand out, letting the wind whip around your fingers. It really did feel like you were flying! You laughed in spite of yourself, enjoying the sensation of gliding through the air and above you where you couldn’t see, making Nero smile as well.  Upon landing though, you put your hand back on his shoulder; the falling part a still a little scary despite him holding you securely against his body. “You’re amazing!” you suddenly declared, looking up at him from your resting place in his arms. “How can you do that!?”

    “Not scared anymore?” he asked instead of answering.

    “No!  Well...it is a little scary, but--”  You put your hand out again, reimagining the feeling of the wind so high up rushing through the spaces between your fingers, “I’ve never felt so…”  You brought you hand back in, “Free.” You shifted your legs, signaling for him to let you go. Nero let your legs slide off his arm and only fully released you once you were on your own two feet again.  “How do you jump so high?” you tried again, watching his gaze avert; guising it under the pretense of looking around for the guy.

    “I work out,” he said, flashing a knowing smile before gesturing to the pathway in front of you, “We should keep moving.  I doubt he’s gonna give up.”

    Clearly from his appearance alone, you could tell he wasn’t a normal, everyday citizen of Fortuna.  The fact that he had a metal arm was clue enough, but toting around a sword--that you noted was absent today--on one’s back certainly didn’t seem like normal behavior.  You’d seen others with swords on their hips, but they all looked like they were part of some royal army. Perhaps that’s what his old occupation was before defecting and becoming some kind of mercenary?  Before long, however, it was time for your next scheduled appearance and so Nero delivered you safely to the photoshoot, staying out of sight so that no one would put two-and-two together if they ever saw him with you outside.

 

    “That’s it for today, kid.”  They told him as usual once it was deemed late enough for you to be back.  “Y/N’s got some things to look over before bedtime.”

    “Actually,” Nero interjected instead of just leaving like he normally did, and instead of talking to them, he turned to you, “I was thinking of getting dinner.  You hungry?”

    The first man cleared his throat loudly, “She doesn’t have time to go on a date with you, she’s--”

    “I think Y/N can decide if she’s got time or not,” Nero cut him off with a flat tone.

    “Y/N,” the second man stood from his seat, putting a hand to your shoulder.  “Once the contracts are finished, you’re free to have dinner. But until then,” he gestured to the seat in front of you.

    The way he squeezed your shoulder, though, made you think he was just saying it pacify Nero.  You wanted to--you wanted to leave right now and go with him, that much was clear in your eyes when you looked back at him.  “If it gets too late, please don’t stay out on account of me, okay?” And by all accounts, it really was ‘too late’ for either of you, but despite the nonverbal warnings, you rushed out of the office as soon as your last signature was scribbled on the paper, bumping into Nero in the hallway.  Literally.

    Even though you showed no signs of falling from running to him, he still brought his arms to your sides to prevent it.  “In a hurry?”

    “I…” your cheeks were tinted, not wanting to admit that you were worried he was leaving or had already left.

    “Ready?”

    “Yes,”

    Because it was getting late, there weren’t as many people out and about; a stark contrast to the cities you were used to.  You weren’t even that paranoid about being recognized, just enjoying your time sitting here with Nero--off the clock, and very relieved to see that it made no difference in him.  “What’s with those two, anyway? I get your image is a major deal, but do they have to be so controlling over everything?”

    “They’ve been in charge for as long as I can remember,” you admitted.

    “You mean you’ve been doing this since you were kid?”

    “Yeah…” you poked at your food, not because you didn’t like it, but because of the topic; realizing you’d never spoken to anyone about your real life before.  You’d been encouraged not to get close to others as well, being told that other people would only want to take advantage of you for your popularity and money. And while you didn’t see any of that in Nero, you always had to keep reminding yourself that you’d only just met almost a week ago, and there were many things you didn’t know about each other.

    “No wonder you’re obsessed with going out.”

    “Obsessed??”

    Nero laughed as he gestured to you, “You’re always going stir-crazy, cooped up in rooms with people around you all the time.  Do you ever get time alone, besides bathing?” The look on your face told him ‘no’ for you. “Sorry to bring it up, I’m sure you don’t wanna talk about work.”

    “Why are you the only one who carries a sword on his back?”

    “Huh??”

    “The other men who carry swords, it’s on their hips.  And they wear uniforms.”

    “They’re the Order of the Sword,” his voice was clearly indicative of not wanting to talk more about it than that.

    “Did you used to be with them?”

    “That’s not important,” Nero was suddenly dismissive, drawing the line there.

    “Sorry…” you went back to poking the food, “I just...wanted to know more about you.”

    “It’s fine,” he answered, but still clearly not willing to get into his past with you.  “I started it.”

    You were quick to change the subject, bringing up anything that didn’t have to do with either of your jobs, or histories, but you still secretly worried that you had annoyed him with your previous insistence.

    He walked you back afterwards, mood having resettled so you were both at ease once more.  You walked much more closely at his side than you initially did, telling yourself it was the cooler temperature of the night air, and definitely not you foolishly letting yourself get close to someone you might never see again after you leave Fortuna for the next city.  Since it was ‘late’ Nero walked you all the way to your room this time, where in the doorway you thanked him for inviting you out and bade him goodnight.

    “Hey...Y/N,” his voice was a little quiet, and you weren’t sure if it was because he was trying to be polite or if something was wrong.  The look on his face seemed to make you think the latter when you turned back to him. “I just… Sorry. For how I...spoke to you. When you asked about The Order,” he reached up to scratch at the back of his neck as he said so.

    “You don’t have to apologize,” you answered earnestly.  “I shouldn’t have pried when you obviously didn’t want to talk about it.  I should be the one apologizing.”

    Nero shook his head, “Don’t worry about it.”  He then propped his left arm against the frame and leaned into it, “Did you have fun, at least?  Off the clock?”

    “Every day’s been fun...with you.”

    His little laugh was cute, “Good.  Just wanted you to have some actual free time.”

    “Thank you for taking such good care of me,” you honestly didn’t know why you said it, but it seemed like an appropriate response.

    Nero seemed confused by it too; inclining his head in a small nod, “Sure, don’t mention it.”  He seemed a little nervous if you had to hazard a guess of what his expression was about, but for the life of you, you couldn’t think of anything that would make him nervous.

    Taking it as a sign he was getting anxious to leave, you once again wished him goodnight and began turning to go into the room.

    “Oh, Y/N, there was one more thing.”

    When you turned back to him once more, you were shocked to find Nero closer than he had previously been; leaning down just as the cool metal of his right hand braced the back of your shoulder and brought his lips against yours.  It was a soft, sweet motion that wasn’t laced with any expectation or intent, yet still made you freeze in place. Your entire face was heated and your eyes were wide when he pulled back as if to gauge your reaction.

    “I, uh, hope you’re not mad.”

    You didn’t know  _ what _ to say, and just stared up at him, completely in shock at the unexpected moment that you hoped you weren’t ruining.

    “Sorry,” Nero’s hand fell away from you, as did his gaze, “I shouldn’t have--”  Your palms on either side of his jaw pulling him back in to plant a kiss on his lips kept him from speaking.  Nero’s reaction, however, was far less stupefied and made it seem like he certainly was no stranger to kissing as his hands slipped around your waist to bring you even closer.  You followed his clearly more experienced lead, not realizing he had leaned back against the doorframe so that you were leaning more into him until you broke away for air. When you did so, you immediately buried your face against his chest, listening to his elevated heartbeat and the rumble of his chuckle as he brought his gloved hand up to stroke the back of your hair.  “Gonna take a guess that you’re not mad at me?” You shook your head, not trusting your voice to not squeak. “Good.” You felt overwhelmed by so many things all at once, not knowing where to begin even deciphering any of it--but you did know one thing. You knew that you didn’t want Nero to ever let you go. “Hey,” his voice was even softer than before, almost a gentle murmur as if he didn’t want to disturb you, “you okay?”

    Finally you lifted your head to look up at him, finding that the sight of him now made your cheeks instantly heat up at just the mere thought of his lips on yours.  “Yes…” you whispered back, not sure of what your next move was going to be… You wanted to invite him to stay with you, but you also knew how bad of an idea that would be--and not even in the case of something not-so-innocent happening between you two.  But the sheer sight of Nero walking out of your room would have the entire team up in arms. They’d probably fire him on the spot and forbid you from seeing him ever again.

    “It’s late,” the back of his knuckles brushed your cheek, “you need to get some sleep.”

    You nodded, begrudgingly agreeing, but grateful that he was keeping the moment grounded and not letting you take in the flighty direction you would have if it had been all up to you.  Moving with him when he stood from the doorframe, Nero straightened the bottom of your shirt that had become disheveled from his hands. “See you tomorrow?” you asked, and felt immediately dumb.

    But seeing him smile like  _ that _ made it worth it, “Of course.”  Nero leaned in one more time, chastely kissing your forehead to prevent another brain-breaking moment before murmuring, “Goodnight, Y/N.”

    Now behind your closed door, you leaned against it, face still flushed and heart still pounding.  For a moment, you even considered that none of that had been real; that it’d all just been a figment of your rampant imagination.  You brought your fingertips to your lips, as if you could still feel the warmth Nero’s had left there, pondering just what that all meant.  Had it been some in-the-moment vibe he’d felt out because given out guarded he was, he didn’t strike you as the type to quickly get close to people on a whim.  Glancing at the clock on the wall made you sigh, knowing you’d probably look tired tomorrow for the fansign you had scheduled; making a note to yourself to get up even earlier so give your makeup artist more time to cover up the impending bags that would surely be present under your eyes.

  
  


    It was hard to keep the stupid grin off your face, even though you were exhausted despite going to bed nearly as soon as Nero left.  Even though you were laying down, you weren’t able to fall asleep right away; mind running wild with thoughts seeing him tomorrow and the things you’d talk about and the places you’d visit--some of which were starting being you favorite.  Even the makeup artist, who normally kept to herself since you were always so sleepy and unresponsive in the morning, couldn’t help but comment that you seemed happy. It killed you to not be able to tell her, but you knew that word would get around and that it would only end in disaster if it became public knowledge that your relationship with your bodyguard had transcended strict professionalism.

    When you entered the office, you weren’t shocked to find Nero already standing there, unable to tell how rigid he was until you approached, due to his jacket.  His jaw was clenched as he stared forward, listening to the words being hurled at him as the first man slapped his hand down on the desk’s surface, making you jump in place.  “And  _ you _ !” he pointed at you with his other hand, “You’re just as much to blame!”

    “What??”

    He gestured down to the photo his hand was pressed against, a rather blurry, but still clear enough image of Nero’s profile with you cradled in his lap sitting on that stone bench.  “Do you know how fortunate we are that this didn’t get released to the public!”

    “If it didn’t get released, then what’s the big deal?”  Nero too gestured to the picture.

    “Because, you muscle-head, the scumbag is blackmailing us with it.”

    Your eyes had yet to leave the photo, knowing you were at fault.  You had chosen to stay seated, and knew the risks of choosing to stay curled up against his chest in public then.  You wrung your hands, wishing you had listened to your head instead of your emotions. “It’s not Nero’s fault. It’s mine…”

    “We’ll get to that,” he barely spared you a glance for glaring back up at Nero’s indignant face.  “We told you to keep a low profile and to keep Y/N away from this kind of thing. What do you have to say for yourself??”

    “She was scared, I held her till she wasn’t.  So what?”

    “Scared of what!?  A bug?!”

    You could tell that he didn’t want to tell them about his ability to jump so high into the air for whatever reason by the way his jaw clenched again, clearly scrambling in his mind for something to say.

    “Snake,” your voice was shaky, and almost inaudible, so you cleared your throat and tried again, “A snake.  There was a huge snake, and I--” you glanced up at Nero for quick confirmation that this was believable, “I jumped up on him.  It’s not his fault--I wouldn’t get down, and asked him to keep me off the ground because I was...so afraid of the snake and that there’d be more…”

    The first man eyed you suspiciously as you pressed your lips together into the pout he’d tried describing to Nero on the first day.  He scowled and turned to the second, who’d been quiet throughout all this so far. “You deal with her!”

    “The important thing is that it wasn’t released.  But this  _ will not _ happen again.  Understood?” You nodded, relieved and tried to not let it show.  “Good. Now, finish getting ready for your fansign, and you,” he turned his attention on Nero, “You go home.”

    You and Nero collectively started at that, and in unison responded, “What?”

    “There’s a photo of you with her.  They’ll know your face, and know that you’ll be with her.  You’re useless to us now.”

    “You can’t just--”

    “Idols live a much stricter life than normal civilians,” he cut Nero off, and used the word ‘civilians’ on purpose because he knew its meaning would resonate with him.  “It can’t even be perceived that she’s involved with another person, or else it would--”

    “Hurt her image, yeah.  And it’s bullshit.” You looked up at him, eyes a little wide at him speaking so bluntly and angrily to them like that.  “She’s a person, not a puppet. It’s so stupid to force her into these dumb rules just to keep lining your own pockets with money.”

    “This is a business, kid,” the first piped in again.  “One that she agreed to be in. Free spirit like you wouldn’t understand.”

    Nero scoffed, “So what are you gonna do?  Be her bodyguard yourself? Can you even find someone quickly enough to replace me?”

    “I…”  All three of them paused to look at you.  “I want it to be Nero…”

    “We know very well what you  _ want _ ,” the second deadpanned, “Just let us figure this out.”

    “I feel safe with him,” you pleaded, taking a step forward.  “You can’t take that away from me, please.” You hoped harkening back to the kidnapping incident would make them reconsider.  There were many times that you didn’t even go out (which they preferred) because whoever they hired to stay with you didn’t care to make you feel safe--or they themselves creeped you out.  “Please. Nero hasn’t done anything wrong, you can’t punish him for nothing.” Because you were so focused on convincing the two on the other side of the desk to relent, you didn’t notice the look Nero had been giving you; being absolutely stunned to see you fighting so hard on his behalf.  He would have smiled if he wasn’t so pissed right now.

    They leaned away, lifting the packet of photos in front of their faces so that they could mumble to each other for a few moments before sitting upright again.  “Fine. You’ll escort her to the fansign.”

    The relief was short lived, however, as the first immediately followed up, “But we will be finding a replacement for you so that there’s no chance she’ll be recognized by association.  I suggest you get your goodbyes in at some point between then and now.”

    You’re face was doing a horrible job at hiding the ache in your chest.

    “Go finished getting ready, Y/N.  You’re going to disappoint your fans if you’re late.”

  
  


    For the sake of everyone who was so eager to meet you, speak with you, have your autograph, and take photos with you, you sucked it up.  Proving that you were a true professional, there was not a single soul in that audience that would have ever suspected your life was anything but perfect.  You smiled, and laughed, and shook hands, gave hugs, took pictures with the fans (and some parents of) as well as offering a personal autograph to every single one of them as thanks for coming out to meet you and supporting you.  It was only during a brief intermission to allow you to tend to any personal needs that you had your only slip-up. Behind the scenes, where you sipped your water, eyes casually scanning around in search of that spike fluff of silver hair when both managers approached you.  The first signaled to the second as he went out through the curtain to address the crowd and prepared to announce your return while the second came and sat next to you. You immediately had a bad feeling.

    “We found a replacement for Nero.  Another swordsman, who is more than capable of making you feel safe and secure.”  Your heart sank. “He may not coddle you as Nero did. But that certainly isn’t what he was hired for.”

    “When’s he leaving?”  You tried to not let the waver in your voice be apparent.  “I want to thank him for everything he did for me before he goes.”

    “The switch has already been made.  We felt it would be best that way. Less drama.  Less attention.” You stared hard at the bottle of water in your hands as you just listened.  “Don’t worry. He was paid in full, as if he completed the rest of the time he was hired for. So he should be satisfied, since your safety was all he cared about.  Correct?”

    “Yeah…”

    “It also probably for the best that you just rest after this.  Don’t go out since your concert is tomorrow. Don’t you agree?”

    “Yes…”

    He pretended not to notice the tear that was able to escape your fortitude as it dropped into your lap.  “Good girl, Y/N. Now let’s finish strong, shall we?”

  
  


    The rest of the day and the following day were a blur.  Everywhere you looked, your gaze was seeking out that bright silver mass of spikes; the calming hue of his jacket; the extravagance of that sword always slung across his back.  But you couldn’t find any of it anywhere. It was almost as if Nero had never existed in the first place, all traces of him gone except the memories you had with him. And they hadn’t lied about your new guard; he was an accomplished swordsman, and one of the members of The Order you had learned a bit about from Nero.  He was always friendly; asking you how your morning or day was going; if you needed anything from him; if you needed him to get anything for you. But you mostly stayed in your room after you had only once asked him to take you to the park. After one walk through, and no sign of Nero--you honestly didn’t know why you thought he’d be there or would have left some sign of his presence--you lost the drive to sightsee after realizing it had been the company that made it so great rather than all the little things to do and see.

    There wasn’t much time left for you to be in Fortuna, and most of those days were scheduled with one more concert, a photoshoot, and one more exclusive fansign that was designed to be smaller and leave more time to really to get to talk to and take questions from fans who were willing to make it to such an event.  You wondered if you could hold it together for the remainder of the time.

    “You did amazing,” Erik, your new bodyguard, commented suddenly.  You smiled your thanks, clearly tired and not wanting to talk after hours of using your voice onstage, but still he persisted.  “My daughter is actually a huge fan. I sort of wish I could tell her about meeting you.”

    Unable to find the energy to hold a decent conversation, you stood up from your seat to retire to bed, but still found the will to at least say, “Why don’t you bring her?  To the last event? I’d love to meet her backstage.”

    “You’d do that?”

    “Of course.  I love meeting my fans.”  You figured it could be like a perk for having to deal with you in such a sullen state, even though you were doing your best to pretend you were fine.

    “Thank you!”  He reached over and cupped your hands in his with a bright smile on his face, “I know it will mean the world to her!”  You smiled again as your reply, pulling your hands from his as you went up to your room and immediately thereafter flopped down in bed to sleep.  Your last thoughts before drifting off were naturally of your former bodyguard, fingers absently reaching up to brush your lips in remnance of how softly his had touched there before you suddenly turned over as if to banish the thought.

  
  


    Once again, the time soared by; having lost track of it somewhere between the busyness of your schedule and the absent minded moments you allowed yourself to daydream.  Before you knew it, you suddenly realized that you were sitting at the last scheduled event in Fortuna. Which meant come tomorrow, you’d be leaving until another tour brought you through.  Still, true to the nature of wanting to give back to your fans, you smiled through it all; laughing and sharing stories with group, answering questions, and giving away gifts. It wasn’t until you were backstage that you remembered your promise, seeing a little girl hiding behind the coattails of your bodyguard, poking her head out every now and then to steal looks at you.  You squatted down to get on her level once you reached speaking distance and hugged your knees, waiting for her to pop out again. “Hi there,” you lifted one hand and wiggled your fingers at her once she did, “What’s your name?”

    “Callie,”  she squeaked, hiding her face against his leg.

    “Callie?  That’s such a beautiful name.  I’m Y/N,” you stuck your hand out far enough so she wouldn’t have to come out from her hiding spot if she wanted to shake it, “It’s nice to finally meet you.”  Above, you couldn’t see the fond smile Callie’s father was looking down at you two with.

    "I know who you are," the little girl smiled at you.  "You're my daddy's new girlfriend!"

    "Callie!"  Erik reached down to push her completely behind him, joining you both on the floor.  "Sorry, Y/N...you know how kids are…"

    You wanted to respond that it was okay, you were certain every kid wanted a famous parent at some point in their lives, but Callie was not content to leave it at that.  She climbed on his back so she could pop up behind her dad's shoulder, "But you told uncle that you met your most favorite singer and you were gonna marry her!”

    He quickly threw his hand over her mouth, begging, “Callie, please--”

    You stood first, habitually dusting your skirt off even though it hadn’t touched the floor.  When he stood as well, he brought Callie up with him, balancing the girl on his hip and gave her a very father-like look.  “ _ Please _ just say ‘hello’ to Y/N.  She is being very nice to let you come backstage to meet her!”

    “Nice to meet you!” she finally complied, “My daddy really loves you!”  Almost.

    “I’m...going to take her away now,” Erik said, clearly embarrassed, but not before letting his daughter tell you bye.

    You waved her off with a smile before tiredly taking a seat, somehow not bothered by the staff swarming around you to finish up their jobs and prepare for tomorrow.  Without knowing how long it’d actually been, you were woken up by a hand on your shoulder. You started, jumping in your seat a little as your eyes darted around frantically; in your half-sleepy state you were sure you’d heard  _ his  _ voice.

    “Y/N?”  You slumped in your seat when you heard your name again with the heavy realization it’d been your mind playing tricks on you.  “Are you okay?” Erik asked as he sat adjacent to you at the small table.

    “Yeah...must have dozed off.  Sorry to worry you,” you began moving to stand, but a hand covering yours easily made you pause.

    “There’s still a pretty sizable crowd out there.  You may want to wait to head back still.” You nodded, grateful that he didn’t keep holding on, slowly withdrawing once you’d settled back into your seat.  “I wanted to apologize for my daughter earlier… I know she’s happy to have met you, but I hope she didn’t make you feel awkward.”

    "No," you fibbed to spare his feelings, "she's very adorable.  You and your wife must be very proud."

    His smile twitched, “No wife.  Just me and Callie.”

    “Oh, I’m so sorry…”  Of course you wouldn’t have known.  You’d known Erik even fewer days than you’d acquainted yourself with Nero.  “Do you…” You noted the glint in his eyes, as if hopeful of something. “Do you know how much longer it should be to clear out the remaining people?  I’m very tired.” Without calling attention to it, you weren’t sure if you were just imagining that disappointed look he gave you before relenting and leaving you to go see about a route to get you back to the building you were occupying with your staff.

  
  
  


    You didn’t even bother figuring out the words to let your managers know that you suspected Erik was interested in more than just protecting you.  You’d be leaving Fortuna soon enough anyway and then  _ everything _ would be a thing of the past.  Instead of sleeping, you were wide awake, standing at your window overlooking the night life of the city.  Normally you always went out on the last night, more of a celebration of a successful job that included celebrating everyone involved; but you were in no mood to be out and about.  Many of the staff still went to celebrate still, having tried asking you why you weren’t going, but eventually the message that you were staying in spread that they all just as soon left your to your own thoughts.  It’s why the knock at the door was a bit surprising. Figuring that it was one of the members of the team that was a bit closer to you trying one more time to get you to join them, you answered the door without checking the peephole first, now surprised to see Erik standing there on the other side.

    “Checking in,” he said with a smile.

    You looked at the clock on the wall for good measure, “It’s past your designated time, Erik.  You don’t have to stay just because I didn’t go out with everyone else. I’ll be fine.”

    “Oh, well, actually they asked me to stay over…  Just in case, since everyone has gone out.”

    Your managers had never asked a bodyguard to stay longer than necessary; especially once you were closed up in your room, but you supposed it had more to do with making sure that Nero didn’t show up as a precaution than anything else.  “I appreciate it,” you answered, rather dutifully, “but I’m just going to get ready for bed. I’m sorry if you had to come all the way back here.”

    “Actually, Y/N…”  You took a step back from him, a clear visual flying through your mind the last time you heard something similar in this very doorway.  “I was hoping you had some time to talk?”

    You regarded the look on his face before deciding that he looked properly in need of advice--perhaps a woman’s advice.  “Sure,” you gestured with a small sweeping motion as you moved to the side to make room, offering him a place to sit thereafter.

    The air turned tense no sooner than he started talking.  “I know we’ve only known each other for a few days, but…”

_    ‘Oh no,’ _  you thought worriedly,  _ ‘this can’t be happening…’ _

    “But I feel such a spark with you--a connection!  I’ve never felt this way about anyone in my entire life before!

    You were actually very grateful for having met Callie since she had outed her father as a fan to you.  Knowing that made this less shocking, but still just as uncomfortable. As a fan, and these were all assumptions since you had no way of knowing just how big of a fan Erik was, he would have had the opportunity to ‘get to know you’ through all outlets of media you appeared on, and to some fans, it made them feel like as if they were truly close to you.  That much never bothered you, since it was part of the trade and you loved having fans that knew enough about you to be able to ask meaningful questions and ask for specific stories or advice. But it was the ones who took it too far, the ones who assumed you felt exactly the same way about them as they did you, which made for some scary situations at times.  Thankfully, this was just awkward. “I’m flattered,” you said, finding yourself repeating almost verbatim the last time you had to address this issue. “But this, we, can’t happen.”

    “But I thought...we were getting along so well?”

    “We are, but I’m too busy with my career to date…”  That was the half-truth you were allowed to tell, anyway.  “I’ll be leaving Fortuna  _ tomorrow _ .  Did you plan on uprooting your daughter to go with me?”

    The expression on his face clearly told you that he thought you would tell him to wait for you and that you’d be back as soon as possible to be with him.  “There’s someone else, isn’t there?” You blinked, afraid to ask him where he’d heard that in case it made you look suspicious, but he seemed to sense you wanted to know where that was coming from.  “I’d heard rumors from some of the staff that your previous bodyguard and you were a little too fond of each other.”

    “Is...is that so…”  It was less a question for him to answer so much as it was a disappointed revelation of the gossip.

    “Are you seeing him behind everyone’s backs?”

    You found his direction questioning rather rude.  Like it was any of his business! But, in hopes that he would go back and set the record straight to those who were gossiping, you decided to answer.  “No,” you voice was clipped as you stood from the table to move back to the window you’d previously been standing at. “I think you should leave now. I’m very tired.”

    “Y/N, I…”  You heard the chair scrape against the floor as he too stood, but instead of leaving, Erik approached you.  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you. But I...I just had to know.”

    “You ‘had’ to know?”  You turned back to him, “What does that even mean?”

    “Well…” he stepped closer, “if you’re not with someone else.  Why can’t you be with me?”

    You wanted to shout that it was because you didn’t even know him and hadn’t taken any effort to remedy that; that he was just taking advantage of this situation as your bodyguard to get close to you with some grand illusion that he would sweep the idol he was a fan of off her feet.  But the reality was that you were so frustrated and hurt, not just at Erik or this moment...there was a deep hurt you were struggling to get over that Nero had left, and even if you were allowed to date, you seriously doubted you could get passed that. “I can’t be with anyone, I--”

    Erik’s hands came up to your shoulders and began drawing you in.

    So you shoved him back, “What are you doing??”

    “I’m sorry, I thought--”

    “You should leave, Erik.”  You said once more, bringing your arms around your ribs, “I’m tired.”

    “Y/N...I’m sorry.  I misread the situation…”  He looked and sounded apologetic at least, letting you know that he seriously thought he was doing what he thought would win you over.

    “Let’s just forget this ever happened.  Okay?”

    “Yeah…  Yeah, you’re right.  Goodnight, Y/N… I’ll see you in the morning.”

 

    All this insanity had your mind racing at an incredible pace.  From your stampeding emotions, to nearly losing your cool with Erik, to the stress of the impending departure, you weren’t quite sure what exactly was the thing keeping you awake.  The sun was already starting to rise before you realized you’d been up all night agonizing over every little thing that had happened since stepping foot in this city. You could hear movement outside your door before there were three knocks, followed by Erik’s muffled voice as he spoke through the door.  “Y/N, they’re asking for you. Are you awake?”

    So that you didn’t have to raise your voice, you moved closer to the door and responded, telling him that you’d be out in a few minutes.  But after a few moments, you decided that you’d had enough. Enough of people telling you what to do; enough of people trying to use you; enough of feeling so out of sorts that your head felt like it might explode.  You felt claustrophobic in a way, impulsively deciding to open your window. But you didn’t stop at the fresh air, looking down at the distance to the ground. It wasn’t too terribly high, but still had the potential to hurt if you landed wrong.  Taking the chance, you climbed through the window and let yourself hang as low as possible before letting yourself fall to the ground. Your landing wasn’t as graceful as you would have liked, but you weren’t hurt either. Dusting yourself off and realizing that you were outside, alone without anyone following or escorting you, and felt exhilarated.  You knew you wouldn’t be able to stay in one spot for too long before people would start coming around and recognizing you. In another snap-decision, you resolved to going to that park that you’d come to like so much. It was just unfortunate that you didn’t know how to get there from here on your own, so you spotted some trees on the other side of the tall buildings and set off on your adventure.

    The fact that none of this was even starting to look familiar didn’t deter you; positive that it was only because someone had always been leading you before now.  Your confidence began to seriously wane once reaching the wooded area however. There was no grand metal archway to pass under and the sunlight seem to be incapable of actually penetrating through the treetops.  It looked nothing like how you remembered, but surmised that it must just be the opposite side. That was the only explanation you were telling yourself as you still ventured onward, heart pounding with impending dread of going back.  The more you weaved in between the trees, the more it was becoming apparent that this was no the park you had originally set out for. The deeper you went, the dimmer it became and the thicker the air; as if there was some gloomy presence waiting to prey upon unsuspecting passersby.

    “You’re being silly,” you told yourself aloud in an attempt to quell your nerves upon realizing that you were indefinitely lost.  Even if you turned around now, you’d already made so many twists and turns, there was actually no telling which direction was ‘back’ anymore.  You noted that the sounds of nature had ceased as you knew them, and the noises you were hearing were...eerie. Unnatural, even. If you were to be frank, it sounded like something right out of a horror movie where unsightly creatures would leap out of the shadows and attack innocent people for their souls, or blood, or whatever it was that movie-monsters consumed.

    You decided that you shouldn’t want horror films, or anything scary for that matter, for a long while after this was over.  Surely you were just tricking yourself into hearing these noises--what in the world could possible be making a clicking-hissing-whirring sound all at once besides some sort of machine?  The continued noises, the additional new noises, and paranoia started to get the better of you, electing to turn back as best you could and prayed that you picked the right direction. At least until it sounded like something dashed through the woods behind you.  Looking in all directions, but seeing nothing, you took a deep breath, hyping yourself up to get ready to just run like mad till you made it to the edge of the forest again when a low, terrifying growl cause you to stumble in place.  _ ‘A bear,’ _ you told yourself as you immediately began trembling, afraid to look over your shoulder but did so any, only to see something that was unlike any woodland creature you had ever seen in your life.  One look and you screamed, it howling in return and began emanating lightning from its body as you toppled over in your attempt to back away. Unable to even fathom what you were seeing, you flipped over to get up to your feet and took off at a dead run, only for the thing to suddenly appear before you in a flash of hot light, causing you to skid to a halt on the leaves littering the ground before falling flat again.  The monster wasn’t so merciful this time, immediately rearing back to strike you with its massive claws, and the only thing you had time to do was screw your eyes shut as you doubled over and covered your head--hoping that death was painless.

    You almost didn’t hear the sound of metal clanging against its thick hide through your terror.  Your heart felt like it was going to burst out of your chest, breath short and shallow as you looked back when hearing the sound of a sword slicing through the air.  Eyes wide, you sat up, unbelieving of what you saw. “Wh--Erik!?”

    “Y/N!!”  He was using all of his strength to push against the beast’s talons before it roared again and lept backwards.  “Are you okay!?”

    “I--I’m--”

    “Just run!!” he shouted, barely able to defend himself against the sudden attack that threatened to knock him to the ground, “Go now!!”   


    While you didn’t want to leave him alone with that thing, you knew you were no fighter, and would probably just be in his way if you stayed.  Without needing to be told again, you scrambled back up to your feet and once more ran off in some undetermined direction; ducking and weaving between tree trunks at random intervals as if that would help keep you safe from something that could apparently teleport.  You didn’t know how long you’d been sprinting, but it certainly hadn’t felt like more than a few minutes when suddenly, just as before, the same kind of creature jumped down in front of you. You toppled over in your attempt to change directions so quickly, losing your footing against the leaves beneath your feet.  You could still hear Erik’s ongoing battle in the way you’d left and knew your only chance of survival was to get back to him, but...that might very well mean the end of his life. So you did the only thing you could do, you grabbed the nearest branch that wasn’t stick-size and swung. The wood splintered against the creature’s electric body, but seemed to stun it enough from being smacked in the face for you to run--even further away from Erik.  You knew you’d never forgive yourself for contributing to his death, especially when he had a little girl back home, resolving to give up your own life instead.

    Just like before, it didn’t take long for this monster to catch up to you either, seemingly agitated to a great degree for you having stuck it in the face.  You were somehow able to stay on your feet when it landed directly in your path, but only for a moment; falling over as it swiped the air in your direction and witnessing the current of electricity it left behind.  You began scooting backwards in one last pathetic attempt to get away when the thing cocked its head at you, arm rearing back a clawed hand to undoubtedly skewer you. Throwing your arms up in front of your face to both block the view and in instinct to protect your head, your voice was overtaken by another much louder and emboldened shout.  The electric beast was suddenly slammed into the ground, head first, creating a bit of a shockwave that flipped you over. Landing on your stomach knocked the air out of you, but you were still able to look up, first seeing metal pressing it’s horned head into the ground. That metal was far from a sword, however. You were, once more, stunned by the sight of your savior, Nero’s arm glowing bright before it was suddenly exploding, seemingly knocking him backwards with it, but he was able to easily flip around and land on his feet.  A metal attachment rested at the end of what remained of his arm now but he didn’t even seem to care as he drew his sword from his back and lept up in on of those gravity-defying arches and was somehow able to give himself enough force to bring his blade down on the still dazed monster; cleaving the damned thing where he landed.

    “N--” You were struggling to catch your breath as you pushed yourself up on your hands, arms trembling not only from the near death experience, but also from fear that this wasn’t real.  “Ne--” You were more afraid that you’d been killed and this was some kind of cruel afterlife, “N-Nero..??”

    His reaction was instant, practically slapping his sword on his back and ran over before dropping to one knee, “Are you okay? Y/N??”

    “Nero...”  It was the only thing that you could manage to say.

    He had quickly given you a once over to make sure you weren’t hurt or bleeding, but once he was satisfied with the small inspection, he didn’t wait for you to fully pick yourself up off the ground.  Doing it for you, Nero reached out to grab you by the arm to haul you up and directly to his chest before moving to wrap his natural arm around your back and holding you as closely as he could manage.  “I never should have left,” he whispered fiercely as he buried his face against your neck.. “Forgive me...I failed to keep you safe.”

    “ _ Nero _ \--” your voice cracked this time, everything finally settling in on you as you sobbed into his shoulder.  “I was so afraid--” you cried, “I was so afraid I’d never see you again!” You felt his arm tighten around you just before he shifted his right arm down to his hip.  The sound of metal clicking and clanking together filled the forest around you both till he was putting that arm around you too, now having another attachment there. You could feel the cold of the metal through your shirt, but you didn’t care; not so long as he was holding onto you this tightly.

    “Shh--shh…  Don’t cry,” his left hand moved up your shoulders so that he could stroke your hair.  “I won’t let you go till you’re safe again.” He let you cry into his shoulder still, talking to you softly to calm you down.

    “Don’t leave,” your fingers dug into his jacket as you gripped it as tightly as humanly possible, “don’t leave again.”

    You weren’t able to see it, but Nero’s lips pursed into that fine line as he lifted his face from your neck so he could press the sides of your heads together.  “I’m so sorry, sweetheart…” To his credit, he had thought that he’d been doing the right thing. He knew that your managers were correct in him being recognizable in association to you; backing off had seemed like the right move.  And while he hadn’t planned on the complete separation, Nero had received a job in a nearby town in unfortunate timing. He couldn’t turn it down, not just because of pay, but because he couldn’t let people die. And naturally, what should he walk into except a shit-show as soon as he returned, hearing the excited buzz about the idol touring through Fortuna being missing and other rumors that some old women saw a strangely dressed young woman headed straight for Mitis Forest.  “Ready to move?” he asked in that same gentle voice, knowing that as long as you both stayed still and quiet that you’d be safe from another Blitz attack, but other demons would eventually be able to sniff out your collective human presence. “I promise I won’t jump this time,” Nero nudged his cheek against yours, happy to hear that tiny laugh even if it was almost silent and strained; but the moment was short lived. You could both hear the marching, you unmoving and holding onto him as you tried to stop crying, and Nero’s embrace shifting so that he was somehow holding you even closer as his eyes narrowed on the approaching group of holy knights.  He’d long casted off his uniform, but the contempt was all the same, absolutely refusing to believe that the ‘rebuilt’ religion didn’t hold all of the same fallacies. He noted how roughed up they look and the splatters of blood on their usually pristine coats, probably from finally being able to slay the other Blitz he’d noticed on his way to find you. He felt more like a guard-dog than a bodyguard when he shifted again, moving you slightly away from them, daring them with his intense glare to come closer to you before noticing that one soldier in particular was giving him a really nasty look. Nero zeroed in on him, thumb moving in soothing motions on the back of your shoulder and watched as the man’s gaze shifted to it before his expression grew that much more angry.  He clicked his tongue against the back of his teeth, turning his head only slightly so that his mouth is near your ear when he murmurs that he’s getting ready to pick you up.

    “We’ll take Y/N from here,” Erik sheathed his sword on his hip and stepped forward, reaching out to solidify the statement and began stooping over as if to grab you from Nero’s arms.

    “If you wanna keep those hands, back off,” he practically growled, and made no attempts to appear like he was kidding.  “You didn’t even notice she snuck off to this demon infested forest,” he was doing everything in his power to keep from yelling since he was still holding you this close to him.  Your presence was also the only saving the group from getting cussed out and possibly knocked around a bit, “What makes you think she’s gonna be safe with  _ you _ ?”

    “Because I’m her bodyguard.”

    Nero scoffed, “And a fine job you’ve done.”

    You shifted in place, arms going more tightly around his neck and where you’d hooked yours under his shoulder before quietly pleading for them to stop fighting.  You weren’t sure if anyone other than Nero heard you, but you felt his head move to look at you and nod.

    “Okay…  I’m taking you outta here,” he said, eyes going back to Erik as if seeming to say it more to him than you as he maneuvered you a bit so that he could easily stand with you in his arms.  “Don’t get lost,” he addressed the group and turned on his heel to begin his careful stride back to the city.

 

    Instead of taking you directly back to the office, however, Nero made a detour; settling you down on a bench that was on top of a building.  It was probably an area for employees to come up and smoke, judging by the discarded butts here and there, but neither of you paid that any mind as you slumped forward a little once he sat you down.  “What were you thinking?” he asked gently, sitting on his knees in front of you and looking up at your painfully drained expression. He could see you were clearly still in shock, and knew going back to get yelled at right now wouldn’t do you any good.  “Did you not know that Mitis Forest was dangerous?”

    “..demons…” you mumbled, gaze distant, passing right through him as if you didn’t even see him sitting in front of you.

    “What?”

    “You said...demons…”

    Nero’s lips drew in for a moment--he had, hadn’t he?  “Y-yeah… I did. It’s just what we call the monsters,” he tried, hoping that you were too out of it to fight him on it.

    “You’re a demon slayer...aren’t you?”  Your gaze shifted, as if finally realizing he was there and holding his eyes with yours.

    He cursed his luck, but knew you were too smart to be lied to about it now.  If only you were _just_ cute and not both.  “Yeah,” he admitted with a sigh, reached up to rub the back of his neck, “I got a job right outside Fortuna pretty much the same time they replaced me.  It’s the _only_ reason I left, Y/N.”

    Hearing that made you so happy, and feel so stupid all at once.  Here you had been, secretly getting upset at him for abandoning you, when in reality Nero had been saving people’s lives from demons.  Certainly you hadn’t known him too terribly long, but you felt like you should know him  _ enough _ by how close you two had grown to know he would have never just left you without good reason.  “I didn’t know they were real,” you reached out, movements slow from the fatigue of terror robbing your liveliness, to brush at his cheekbone and wipe away a small splat of blood there.  “But that...that makes sense, now.”

    “It does?”

    “I’d been so curious on how in the world you could jump and move like that…”  


    “Hey…” Nero cocked his head to the side, one brow arching up, “I wasn’t lying when I said worked out!”  You appreciated him going out of his way to make you smile more than you could articulate at this moment, head tilting into his palm when he reached up and cupped your cheek with his gloved hand.  He wanted to ask if you were okay, but he knew there was a lot to process right now, and didn’t want to complicate things for you. Not when you both knew what kind of situation you’d be walking back into once returning.  “What made you do that?” he tried again, genuinely curious to know why you thought wandering through such a dangerous place alone was a good idea.

    “I…” you were embarrassed to admit it, but since he’d been honest with about his real occupation, you didn’t want to hide it from him.  “I got lost...looking for the that park. But I didn’t want to be there with anyone else… But you.”

    Nero’s brows lifted at your words, completely forgetting that he wanted to laugh and ask you how in the world you got so turned around that you ended up in Mitis Forest in favor of reacting almost instantly; leaning up and using his hand that was already at your cheek to guide your lips to his.  Your reaction was a little slow, like you were still in a daze and not entirely believing any of this was actually real; even as you lifted your hands from pressing your palms into the wooden slats of the bench to bring them on either side of his jaw and neck. Nero took the touch as an invitation to get closer, shifting his waist to slide between your legs so that he wasn’t leaning so far forward.  And while you’d never been in such a situation as this, you found that it just felt natural to move along with his movements as you thoroughly enjoyed the exciting tingles and warmth his hips settling so close between your thighs felt as it did from his lips and fingers that slipped into your hair that gently guided you to tilt your head just slightly. What you hadn’t expected, though, was the the wet warmth of his tongue suddenly swiping a slow arch along the bottom of your upper lip.  That was what made you pull back, blinking owlishly and unconsciously putting your fingers to your lip where his tongue had just been.

    “Ah--” he laughed once in embarrassment, cheeks a fine shade of pink as he reached up to scratch the side of his nose.  “Sorry...caught up in the moment.” Your face was flushed as well, not saying anything, just sat with your hand to your mouth and your nod slightly mechanical, which Nero found to be an odd little reaction.  Almost as if you were--he paused for a moment, eyes going wide as well before carefully asking, “Y/N...was… Was that the first time someone…” Your averted gaze answered for you. “Oh, I’m... Sorry,” he brushed some hair that had fallen in your face away, “I just assumed since…” he paused again, looking a little worried, “Wait.  That last time too…” He waited till you were looking again so that he could watch for your answer in your eyes, “That wasn’t...your  _ first _ kiss, was it?”  You at least nodded this time.  “Oh no,” Nero put his hand over his face as he sat back on his legs, taking a long breath, “Y/N, I’m--”

    You stopped him from apologizing again by pulling his hand from covering his face and kissing him.  It was quick and sweet, meant to shut him up more than anything else, which he seemed to understand since he wasn’t chasing your lips with his immediately thereafter.  “I’m happy it was with you.”

    “I’m just a little shocked,” Nero admitted, enjoying you running your fingers through his hair and down his neck but not making it obvious.  “I know you have strict rules to live by, but…” He didn’t want to say out loud and offend you that he just assumed that rich, famous people did what they wanted, when they wanted, and who they wanted without much consequence.

    “It’s not allowed,” you told him, watching as he frowned at the very thought.  “I’m not allowed to date because it would hurt my image.”

    “That’s…”  He obviously was controlling his normally callous tone while with you, “That’s so cruel.  I’m sure you’ve met people before now that you wanted to get to know better?”

    “Sure, but even having friends was questionable.  I’ve always been told to not get too close to anyone, because they’d take advantage of me in some way, or another.”

    “By the two suits?”  Nero scoffed, “Y/N, you can’t let them control every aspect of your life like this.  It’s crazy!” Your smile was sad. “And you said before you’ve been doing this since you were a kid?  What the hell were your parents thinking?”

    Settling your hands in your lap, you contemplated on getting into that story with him.  This was all so new to you, so you weren’t sure what was considered oversharing, and what was appropriate to let him in on.  “They…”

    His hand covering yours made you look up.  “You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to.”

    “I never knew my father,” you began without breaking eye contact, not understanding the emotion that flashed through his eyes as he related to the statement immediately.  “And my mother, she…” you looked back at your hands, realizing that you had never told this to any other person before. “She...used to be a model, and wanted the same for me.  But I… I wanted to sing.” You watched as Nero’s hand shifted to intertwine his fingers with yours. “She thought it was a waste of time...until I was scouted by the agency. When money got involved...she,” you pulled one hand from under his larger paw to wipe at your eye to prevent yourself from crying.  “She signed an agreement, and at the time, I didn’t understand what it all meant, so I signed it too, thinking she had my best interest in mind. She was my mother...why wouldn’t I think that?” This time Nero reached up, using his thumb to swipe away the tear that was threatening to fall. “She signed me over, for money.  I’m...legally  _ their _ daughter now.”

    “The suits??”  


    “Yes.  They’ve been my legal guardians since before I was even a teenager.  And even though I’m an adult by age now, I’m still legally bound by their contract.  So, when you get frustrated at me for doing as they say…” Nero silently let you grab his hand and squeeze.  “It’s because I’m obligated.”

    His thumb moved to and fro against the side of your hand, “You really wanna live like that?”  He waited till you were meeting his gaze before continuing, “You don’t need them to sing, Y/N.”  Seeing that you understood his words, he wasn’t satisfied that you weren’t saying anything. “How do you break it?”

    “By not being profitable anymore.”

    “No, I mean  _ break _ it.  Normally if you violate one of the rules, you’ll be cut from the agreement, right?”

    “Well, yes, but the rules are mostly on my personal life that they could easily shut down.”

    Nero slipped his hand around to the back of your head, fingers idly threading through the strands of your hair, “What about this?”  Not giving you a chance to vocally respond, he kissed you again, more intense than the little peck you’d previously given him. Finally lifting his right arm, the metal of the breaker braced your shoulder blades as he drew up from slouching to make it easier to lean over you.  The motion tilted your head back just slightly, hands smoothing up to rest on his chest in time with Nero’s tongue that gently picked up where he’d left off. He was content only teasing you, but when you didn’t shy away from him, he couldn’t help himself; delicately tracing the curve of your lips in little motions before nudging them further apart with his own and dipping his tongue forward to brush alongside your own.  The noise you made was involuntary as your fingers curled into the worn fabric of his shirt, the reaction a far cry from wanting him off of you. It was all you could do to follow his lead, mimicking the motions of his tongue and the way his lips pressed and guided you as he alternated between kissing and nipping at your lips to tease you into chasing him for more. It was the Devil Breaker slipping downward and pressing against the small of your back that brought you closer that really starting doing you in.  You couldn’t tell from being preoccupied, but Nero had leaned in as well when he pulled you to the edge of your seat so that he was completely and snugly fitted between your thighs, pressing every part of your front flush against him. The heat radiating off of you fanned out over his hips, pulling up a deep sound that rumbled his chest as he rolled his hips in response to the feeling. It made the outline of his evident excitement that much more prominent to you since the material of your pants were not that thick to begin with.

_     That _ was a little much for you right now however, pushing him back gently at the chest with a tiny, shaky gasp for breath as he leaned his forehead against yours.  “N-Nero…”

    “What?” he asked with a little chuckle, breaker coming to rest on your thigh and watched as your hand drifted down to it, carefully tracing the intricacies and parts of it.

    “I can’t do that…”  


    “Well, of course, Y/N.  One step at a time…”

    “N-No…” you lifted your head to look at him, “I meant...I can’t just do something outlandish…  I can’t disappoint everyone who is a fan of me by being part of some scandal.”

    “They can only be your fans if you’re single?”  He seemed floored by the notion.

    “It’s just the culture expected of an idol, and…  And I don’t want to use you like that.”

    “You wouldn’t be using me,” he nudged your forehead with his, “I’m the one telling you to announce our relationship.”  The sentiment just seemed to slip right out of his mouth without realizing it, because the next second, his face lit up as he looked away and nervously scratched at his nose.

    A silly, wide smile suddenly spread across your lips, “What?  What was that??”

    Nero leaned his head away with an exaggerated hum, as if to imply he had no earthly idea what you were talking about.

    “Did,” you grabbed his shoulders to keep him from leaning away anymore, “Did you just decide that we’re dating??”  Holding his shoulders didn’t seem to work at all though, since Nero got this cocky little smirk on his face as he continued to lean; hands locking onto the back of your knees to make sure you came along with him.  “Nero!” By the time you realized what he was doing, Nero had already leaned back so that his back was almost parallel with the rooftop, suspending both himself and you on his legs. With your knees planted against his hips, you had to brace your palms against his torso to keep your balance.

    “What happened?” he smirked up at you.  “Thought you were holding me in place?”

    Too nervous of hurting him, you didn’t dare move quickly as you carefully put a hand to his stomach to try and shift backwards; momentarily getting distracted by the tensed chords of muscles hidden beneath his shirt.  “Show off,” you murmured, quietly admiring how this position forced almost all his muscles to flex to keep you upright.

    Calling him a show off seemed to amuse him even more, acutely aware by now that his strength was infatuating to you.  He shifted both hands to your thighs as he carefully moved one leg so that one foot was on the ground before using it to push up til he was lifting you as he stood up straight; still holding you against him.  It made you taller than him, giving you the chance to lean down to kiss him yet again. “Careful,” he murmured so that his lips brushed yours before starting to slowly let you slide down his body until you were on your own two feet again, “I might get used to this.”

    You laid your head against his chest and wrapped your arms around his waist, wanting the feeling of his arms around you to last forever, but you knew you had to go back and face the consequences of your actions.  “I don’t want you to get involved with what’s going to happen when I go back.”

    “Uh, I’m already kinda involved.  Don’t you think?”

    “But anymore drama for you is unnecessary.  I’ve caused you enough problems.”

    “I think I’m the one causing the problems,” Nero reached up to stroke your hair.  “After all...I kissed you first.”

    “I’m glad you did,” you looked up at him, “I wouldn’t have been brave enough.”

    “Besides,” he seemed as content as you were to just stay there caught in each other’s embrace, “I promised I wouldn’t leave you again.  So whatever you gotta do, I’ll be there with you.”

    “Nero,” you leaned back, holding onto the sides of his shirt, “I’ll be...leaving Fortuna today.”

    “What?  Not gonna ask me to go with you?”

    You shook your head, “I know you can’t do that.  And I wouldn’t ask you to abandon all the people you help.”

    His smile was more than a simple gesture, grateful you understood the nature of his work, just like he was going through hell mentally right now to try and understand yours; reaching up to brush the back of his knuckles along your cheek, “Why’d you have to go and be so damn cute?”

    “Just lucky, I guess.”

    “Everything’s gonna be okay, Y/N.  _  We’re _ gonna be okay.  Even when you leave, you know all you have to do is call for me, and I’ll come running.”

    You dropped your forehead against his collarbone, hiding your face so that he wouldn’t see you fighting back tears; as if it would fool him.  Nero simply let you, letting you hide away as long as you needed till finally you built up your resolve to go back, hand-in-hand.


End file.
